Decades ago, an editor-in-chief of this magazine wrote: "Every doctor has at least one story to tell that could be published in Medical Economics." That's as true today as it was then.

Doctors' personal stories are a hallmark of Medical Economics, and they've helped us win more physician readers than any other publication. This Writer's Guide is designed to help you tell us your story (and to help you make that story a contender in our annual Doctor's Writing Contest).

What should you write about?

In your background as a practicing physician, it's likely there's one experience—and maybe more—that doctors across the nation would want to read about.

Perhaps it's the innovative way you communicate with patients, run your office, or deal with colleagues...perhaps it was an encounter that gave you a unique insight into doctor-patient relations...maybe it was a legal, professional, or financial ordeal that taught lessons you can pass along to fellow physicians...perhaps an accident, illness, or family crisis changed your life or influenced the way you render care. Or maybe your story is about something that fits none of those descriptions and yet, you believe, would make for great reading.

Need some inspiration? Look through this listing of doctor-authored articles we've published recently. Still not sure your story idea is a good one? Summarize it in a letter to manuscripts@advanstar.com . We'll let you know whether your subject seems right for M.E., and if it is, we'll advise you on what's needed to make your story click with our Editorial Board reviewers.

What should you not submit?

Medical Economics does not publish:

• Clinical or scientific articles of any kind

• Fiction

• Poetry

In addition, there are other subjects and types of articles that have little if any chance of acceptance by the Board:

• Essays on health policy, medicolegal issues, or health care delivery that are essentially theoretical. Such articles have their place in scholarly journals, but they're rarely accepted by us. If you want to write on one of those topics, the key for acceptance will be for you to inject yourself, as a physician, into the discussion. For example, how have you—personally and specifically—been affected by the spread of managed care, by the squeeze on health costs, by a malpractice threat or other legal pressures? What specific changes have these things caused in your career, practice style, or personal life? If you've got solutions to propose for the problems doctors are feeling nationwide, spell out those solutions in the context of your personal experience.

• Reminiscences of long-ago events that have no connection to your practice or your life today. If, for instance, you want to write about a memorable professor from your med-school days, tell the reader how that individual shaped the way you practice now.

• Stories that have relevance only within a single specialty or only among doctors in your geographic area. For example, your account of a legal showdown with a hospital or third-party payer has a much better chance of acceptance if it shows in microcosm the problems that doctors throughout the country are battling.

• Vacation articles that deal with places and activities already well familiar to many physicians. Your trip makes for good reading only if the destination is off the beaten path, or if something truly unusual happened there. Another tip: Good photos can make a crucial difference between acceptance and rejection of a travel manuscript.

How should you tell your story?

The secret: Write as if you were relating your experience or idea to a doctor-friend, face-to-face. Use a first-person approach wherever possible, and conversational language—not the formal kind found in academic papers. Try to imagine that you're telling the story to a colleague over coffee.

Use anecdotes to bring the story to life. Don't just mention people, places, or events—describe them. For example, if you're writing about a system you've created to boost patient compliance, don't deal only in numbers and other dry details. Write, too, about specific patient experiences that show how well your system works. Recounting a legal battle? Re-create courtroom scenes for your reader. Writing about that unforgettable vacation? Don't just recite what you did day by day, diary-fashion. Pick out the most meaningful sights, events, experiences—and skip the less-memorable ones.

Don't worry too much about length. Most doctors' stories in Medical Economics run approximately 1,500 to 2,000 words. But we've published great ones a lot shorter or longer than that. Get your story down on paper, in the depth of detail you feel is required to tell it best. If we accept it, our editors will deal with considerations of length.

About pseudonyms: We'll publish them within the body of a story, where appropriate. Your patients' names, of course, should always be changed; it helps, too, if you can alter non-crucial details about such individuals. We also use pseudonyms for characters, organizations, and institutions in doctors' stories that are legally or otherwise sensitive. But we will not assign a pseudonym to an author. In a rare situation, we will agree to make an author anonymous—but only for a compelling reason.

About documentation: Manuscripts about litigation—malpractice claims or lawsuits involving government agencies, hospitals, health insurers, managed-care plans, or other doctors—should be accompanied, if possible, by photocopies of correspondence, court papers, newspaper clippings, or other documents. Also, if you're going to send a story containing statistics on health care or related topics, include a reference to your source. (We seldom publish footnotes, and never publish bibliographies—but we need to know where you got your data.)

How should you submit manuscripts?

It should be double-spaced, with a heading that includes your name, address, daytime phone, and—if you have them—fax number and e-mail address. Be sure to include your CV.

Send the manuscript and other information to manuscripts@advanstar.com as either message text or a Word attachment.

What happens when your manuscript arrives?

We'll send you an acknowledgment. Then your article will be reviewed by members of the magazine's Editorial Board—our top staff editors. They'll decide whether it should be accepted, turned down, or sent back to you with suggestions for revision. We may call or write with questions that bear on the acceptability of the article, or if we feel documentation is needed.

What if your manuscript can't be accepted?

We'll inform you (within 6-8 weeks, if at all possible) and tell you why we can't accept it. We'll explain if the Editorial Board feels your story is off-the-mark for any reason, if it comes too close to an article we published recently, or if it echoes one that's currently being prepared for publication. And, if we think there's a different subject you might have more luck with, we'll suggest it.

If your manuscript is accepted, what happens?

Once again, we'll aim at letting you know within 6-8 weeks and we'll send you our standard writer's contract. All manuscripts accepted from physicians will go through the following process:

1. If the manuscript was mailed to us between January 1 and October 31, it will be entered automatically in that year's writing contest.

2. Your article will be assigned to a Medical Economics staff editor. If that editor has questions, or determines that additional detail is needed, a phone interview will be set up with you.

3. Our staffer will edit the article for organization, length, clarity, and style—with the aim of giving it the greatest reader appeal possible.

4. After this editing is completed, you will receive a copy of the article. We will invite you to return the copy, together with any comments or suggestions you may have.

5. Copies of the article will also go to selected doctors and other individuals who have knowledge of the subject. Their comments will be invited, along with yours.

6. The draft will also be reviewed by our staff fact-checkers, who will double check such specifics as names, dates, events, statistics, and any mathematical calculations in the article.

7. Once all comments are in hand, and the fact-checkers have finished with your article, our editors will apply any final touches that are needed before it goes into the magazine.

8. When the article is published, we will send you two copies of the issue, and your honorarium.